Shuttle car



Feb. 10, 1959 E. CLINE 2,872,747

SHUTTLE CAR Filed Oct. 13, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig 2 Emmett Cline INVENTOR.

Filed Oct. 13, 1955 E. CLINE SHUTTLE CAR Fig.4

2 SheetsSheet 2 E mmeff Cline INVENTOR.

SHUTTLE CAR Emmett Cline, Baistlen, W. Va. Application October 13, 1955, Serial No. 540,233

Claims. (Cl. 37-124) This invention relates generally to self-loading trucks rates atent or power scoops, and is more particularly concerned with a rear loading shuttle truck usable in mining operations.

A primary object of the invention is to provide a mechanized vehicular rear loaded power scoop including means retaining the power scoop in relative fixed position against movement while loading by means of a power applied stop member, and a power urged rearwardly opening power scoop including cam means for lowering the scoop and urging it into a rearward and up-v wardly tilted position, and further including a vertically extensible abutment means for engagement with a roof of a mine from which material is being hauled for preventing the power scoop from tilting upwardly about its support frame.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of the power scoop .shown in position in a horizontal mine shaft;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the power scoop;

Figure 3 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially on line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a diagrammatic side view of the scoop in the transport position, that is, slightly elevated from the mine shaft floor;

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view of the scoop, showing it in the lowered position and approximately halfway in its rearward travel, during which travel the scoop becomes loaded;

Figure 6 is a diagrammatic view of the scoop in a further loading position, that is, where the material in the scoop is being slid rearwardly toward the back. of the scoop preparatory to having the scoop return to the position shown in Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a perspective view or" the novel scoop.

The novel shuttle truck or power scoop is indicated generally at 10 and is intended to be operated within a hor'montally disposed mine shaft 12 for the purpose of loading thereon a rearwardly opening power driven scoop portion indicated generally at 14 which will engage coal or similar material which has been loosened by means of blasting, for example.

The truck 10 includes a rearwardly opening U-shaped frame portion 16, the frame including parallel side members 18 and 26 having extending therebetween a suitable horizontally disposed transverse end plate 22 at the forward end thereof, and transverse brace elements 24, 26 and 28 suitably secured in any suitable manner.

A pair of longitudinally disposed frame elements are suitably secured between the transverse frame elements 24 and 26, said elements being identified at 39 and 32, and have secured therebetween a support plate 34 having journaled therein in any suitable manner a forward steer- 2,8?2347 Patented Feb. 1@, 1959 ing wheel assembly 36 of any suitable character which is steered by means of a horizontally disposed crank arm 38.

The truck will be powered by means of a conventional power source such as an electrically driven torque converter of any conventional character which is indicated generally at 40, said torque converter being operatively connected to a conducting wire reel 42 supported in transversely spaced journal elements 44 and 46 suitably secured on the transverse plate 22 of the frame, the reel 42 being connected to any conventional source of elec- 'trical power (not shown) by means of the reeled conducting wire 48 and being power driven by means of a conventional transfer case 50 operatively connected to a drive shaft 52 including a bevel gear 54 secured on the end thereof, said bevel gear being driven by a bevel gear and drive shaft assembly 56 operatively connected to the power source 40.

A fluid motor 58 including a power cylinder 64 having a reciprocable or extensible piston rod 62 reciprocably supported therein is connected indownwardly and a forwardly depending relationship on the frame 16 of the truck by means of suitable bracket portions 64 and 66 of any conventional character. The piston rod 62 includes at the distal end thereof a stop element portion 68 which is engageable with the ground surface forward of the wheel '70 of the steering wheel assembly 36, and accordingly, as it will subsequently become apparent, the stop element 68 may be extended for preventing forward movement of the truck in opposition to rearward loading movement of the scoop portion or scoop assembly 14 when moved rearwardly during loading.

A suitable electrical motor 72 is mounted on the frame in any suitable manner and drives a fluid pump, indicated generally at 74, by means of a drive shaft 76, said fluid pump directing fluid pressure to a suitable accumulator 78 which is operatively connected to suitable controls for directing fluid pressure toward or away from fluid conduits 8t and 82 which are respectively connected to opposite ends of fluid cylinder 60 for reciprocating the piston rod 62 therein.

Centrally disposed on the transverse brace member 24, for example, is a vertically extending fluid motor assembly or ram 84 which includes a fluid cylinder 36 suitably secured at its lower end to said brace member 24, and an extensible piston rod 88 having at its distal end a suitable abutment element 90 which is engageable with the roof 92 of the horizontal shaft. Thus when a scoop portion is being loaded and thereby becomes heavier, the abutment portion 90 will tend to prevent the frame 16 from.

portions (not shown) over which is journaled drive chain.

102 operatively connected to transversely disposed drive gears 104 suitably secured on the ends of a drive shaft 106 which is supported in a suitable transverse housing member 108, the housing member 108 including a conventional transmission 110 which is operatively connected to a drive shaft 112 extending rearwardly from the power means 40.

The scoop portion 14 opens rearwardly and includes a I pair of parallel side members 114 and 116 suitably connected to a transverse bottom member 118 and back member 120. The side members include oppositely disposed laterally extending end roller elements 122 and 1.24,

end roller 124 being disposed in a downwardly extending relationship relative to end roller 122.

.The side frame members 18 and 20 each has secured thereto a vertically disposed end support plate 126 which include oppositely disposedsimilar cam portions which extend on the inside of said plate 126 toward each other and longitudinally thereon, the cam portions comprising the cam track portion accommodating the rollers 122. or 12% therein comprising a forward andrearward cam portion 128 and 130, each of which includingan'upperhorizontal plane 132 and 134, respectively,.connected to a downwardly angulated portion 136 and 138, respectively, which terminates in a second horizontal plane 145 and 142, respectively, the cam portion128'including a rearward abutment portion 144, and the horizontal portion 142 of the cam portion 130 including an upwardly angulated portion 146 terminating in a horizontalplaneportion 148 in planar alignment with the horizontal portion 134 thereof.

It will be noted in Figures 4 through 6 that rearward reciprocal movement of the'scoopportion 14=from the'elevated horizontal position of Figure 4 results in the cam followers 122 and 124, which are guidingly received in the cam portions 128 and 130, respectively,-moving downwardly into the horizontal planes 140 and 142 respectively, whereupon the lower portion or bottom 118 of the scoop portion 14 is substantially adjacent the floor of the mine shaft, and when the cam follower122 engages the abutment portion 144, the cam follower 124 will have reached the end of the free portion 148 of cam 130 and the scoop 14 will have attained the tilted position illustrated in Figure 6. This is accomplished inasmuch as the plane portion 142 of the cam element 130 is of a shorter length than the comparable plane portion 140 of the cam element 128, and accordingly, subsequent movement of the scoop 114 along the plane portion 140 results in the cam follower 124 being raised by means of its engagement with the upwardly angulated portion 146 of the cam element 130.

Each of the frame members includes'on an upper edge portion thereof suitable swivel support elements 150 which pivotally receives a power cylinder 152 of a fluid motor 154, said power cylinder 152 supporting an extensible piston rod 156 which is pivotally connected at 158 to a suitable laterally extending bracket assembly 160 secured in any suitable manner adjacent the upper edge of the sides 114 and 116 of the scoop 14.

A suitable fluid conduit 162 and -a branch conduit 164 are connected at one of the ends of fluid cylinders 152 while fluid conduits 166 in the branch conduit 168 are connected to an opposite end of the fluid cylinders 152., conduits 162 through 168 being operatively connected to the fluid pressure accumulator 78.

When the fluid motors 154 are in the positions shown in Figure 4,' the scoop 14 will be arranged with its bottom approximately horizontal and elevated slightly from the ground. In this position the truck may be transported from one place to another. When the piston rods 156 are extended from their cylinders 152, the cam followers on the scoop move horizontally for a short distance and then down the angulated portions 136 and 138 respectively 124 come to bear on the parallel portions 140 and'142 of the cams. In this position the scoop 14 rests approxi mately at grade level, and continued movement of the piston rods 146 in the same direction will cause the scoop to load.

As the piston rods 156 continue to extend from their cylinders 152, the cam followers 122 and 124 for each side of the scoop 14 ride rearwardly of the truck, with the cam follower 122 remaining on the straight, approximately horizontal portion 140 of one cam, while the cam follower 124 moves upwardly on the angulatedpart of the rearmost cam of each set of cams. This causes a corresponding tilting of the scoop in a direction to elevate the rearmost end or loading part thereof, as shown.

in Figure 6. Continued rearward movement of the piston rods 156 will bring the cam followers to bear against the ends of the cams.

In order to return the truck to such condition that it is ready for transportation, the piston rods 156 are retracted, thereby moving the scoop from the position shown in Figure 6 to the position shown in Figure 5 and finally to the position shown in Figure 1, whereby the truck is easily transported from inside the mine shaft to a new location.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed asnew is as follows:

1. A self-loading coal truck for use in a mine shaft that has a floor and a ceiling, said truck comprising a frame that has a pair of spaced approximately parallel legs and cross members at the forward ends thereof, a

rearwardly opened scoop having side walls, a front wall and a bottom, said scoop being located between said spaced legs, wheels carried by said frame, means carried by said frame and connected with said wheels for propelling said frame in the mine shaft, means connected to said frame'and said scoop for actuating said scoop in order to load the same, and means for constraining the movement of said scoop, said movement constraining means being carried by said scoop and said legs of said frame and comprising on each side of said scoop a pair of cam followers which are both horizontally and vertically' spaced from each other, a first and a second cam with which said cam followers are respectively engageable, said cams having short parallel portions which, when said cam followers are engageable thereon, retain said scoop in an approximately horizontal position and slightly spaced from the floor of the mine shaft whereby the truck is adapted to be transported, said cams having downwardly angulated parts connected to said portions, and parallel portions at the lower extremities of said angulated parts whereby when said scoop is moved rearwardly said followers move down said angulated parts and come to rest on said parallel lower portions, in which position said scoop has its bottom substantially in contact with the mine floor so that upon further rearward movement of said scoop the scoop becomes loaded through its open end.

2. A self-loading coal truck for use in a mine shaft that has a floor and a ceiling, said truck comprising a frame that has a pair of spaced approximately parallel legs and cross members at the forward ends thereof, a rearwardly opened scoop having side walls, a front wall and a bottom, said scoop being located between said spaced legs, wheels carried by said frame, means carried by said frame and connected with said wheels for propelling said frame in the mine shaft, cylinder and piston rod means connected to said frame and said scoop for actufor each set of cams, so that the cam followers 122 and wing Said Scoop in order to load the Same and means for constraining the movement of said scoop, said movement constraining means being carried by said scoop and said legs of said frame and comprising on each side of said scoop a pair of cam followers'which are both hori- Zontally and vertically spaced from each other, a first and a second cam with which said cam followers are respectively engageable, said cams having short parallel portions which, when said cam followers are engageable thereon, retain said scoop in an approximately horizontal position and slightly spaced from the floor of the mine shaft whereby the truck is adapted to be transported, said cams having downwardly angulated parts connected to said portions, and parallel portions at the lower extremities of saidangulated parts whereby when said scoop is moved rearwardly-said followers move down said angulated parts and come to rest on said parallel lower portions, in which position said scoop has its bottom substantially in contact with the mine floor so that upon further rearward movement of said scoop the scoop becomes loaded through its open end, one of said cams having at the rear extremity of said lower parallel portion an upwardly angulated part by which one of said cam followers elevates a part of said scoop in response to further extension of said piston rods from their cylinders in order to shift the load forwardly in said scoop.

3. The self-loading coal truck of claim 2 wherein there is a steering wheel, means adjustably mounting said steering Wheel on said frame, said mounting means including a control to adjust said steering wheel.

4. The self-loading coal truck of claim 2 wherein there is an extensible ram secured to one of said cross members and adapted to contact the roof of the mine shaft for preventing said frame from moving upward when material is being loaded on said scoop.

5. The self-loading coal truck of claim 2 wherein there is an extensible ram secured to one of said cross members and adapted to contact the roof of the mine shaft for preventing said frame from moving upward when material is being loaded on said scoop, an extensible stop carried by said frame at the front thereof, said extensible stop including a wedge-shaped element which is adapted to dig into the floor when said stop is extended.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,394,350 Powers Oct. 18, 1921 1,562,795 Sauveur Nov. 24, 1925 2,413,124 Van Voorhis Dec. 24, 1946 2,441,581 McDade May 18, 1948 

